A Critical Dialogue with The Dalai Lama and Leading Scientists and Education Experts Mind & Life Institute Dialogue to be Livestreamed from Dharamsala, India, March 12-16 CHARLOTTESVILLE, Virginia, March 6, 2018 — From March 12-16, His Holiness the 14th Dalai...

The 2018 Mind & Life Summer Research Institute, June 2-8 in Garrison, New York, brings together a diverse group of contemplatives, scholars, and scientists to explore the theme “Engaging Cultural Difference and Human Diversity.” The weeklong immersive program will examine...

Siblings Juan and Juliana Santoyo received funding from Mind & Life in 2017 to hold a Think Tank to design and plan the implementation of a contemplative practice-based program for ex-combatants in Colombia’s peacebuilding process (members of the program’s pilot...

Mind & Life would not exist without the contributions of many dedicated individuals who graciously contribute their time and expertise in service of its mission. Last Fall, at the 2018 International Symposium for Contemplative Research, Mind & Life presented Clifford...

Study Design

First-person can be more than a questionnaire. Be creative about collecting subjective information. Avoid using only self-report measures like questionnaires.

Use second-person measures when possible, surveying a friend, partner, teacher, or someone else close to the participant. This adds a great deal in terms of validation of outcomes outside the lab.

When possible, use a variety of third-person measures, including behavioral, cognitive, physiological, clinical, and/or social measures.

If you’re designing a brain study, correlate neural changes with something meaningful in daily life (e.g., clinical outcome, behavioral, social, etc.). This helps ground the research in terms of real-world impact.

Proposal

Include only relevant, clear, and integrated information in the proposal. Add supplemental information (e.g., actual measures, instructions, etc.) in the Additional Materials task.

Adhere to font size, margin, and page limits.

In the methods section, be sure to clearly state participant population (with N and power analysis if possible). If using an underserved population, state how you will be sensitive to particular needs, possible adaptations of intervention, etc.

If your project involves qualitative research, be sure to include specific methodology and a clear analysis plan, with evidence that you (or your team) has the expertise to do this kind of work.

If the project is meant to test the efficacy of an intervention, make the case about why this is important to the larger field and not just your specific/customized intervention. Can your study help you understand mechanisms that may be more broadly applicable?

Budget

Have your budget reflect only the realistic costs needed to complete the work. (If you need less money than the maximum funding amount, this can be a big advantage to your proposal!)

If this work is part of a larger, already-funded project, be sure to explain how this project fits in, and why/how it will go beyond the existing work. Be clear about what this money will be used for within the larger project.